BoxRec

What if Vitali didn't retire for 4 years after the Williams fight? How different is his career?

Difficult to tell but I strongly suspect that he'd have racked-up a fair few defences and his more abrasive style of that period would have been a much better watch.....when he came back in 2008 he was arguably more rounded but a bit less of a risk-taker and outright aggressor.

Admittedly, he beat Sam Peter easily after that long lay-off but Peter was so-very hittable and he also gave Arreola a proper hiding; but I still thought he was better around the Lewis/Johnson/Sanders era.

would have been a whole lot of Knockin' out goin on.

Caractacus wrote:would have been a whole lot of Knockin' out goin on.

My thoughts exactly

I do wonder if the extra miles on the clock would have prevented him carrying on as long as he did. but it's not as if he mixed with the elite for his last couple of years anyway

He would have had to face rahman, pretty good fight. Be the best result of his career if he won.

SaadOffTheDeck wrote:He would have had to face rahman, pretty good fight. Be the best result of his career if he won.

Total NONSENSE!!! ... Rahman was nothing. He was knocked out by the cheese chinned Oleg Maskaev TWICE!!! ... Maskaev was knocked out by Kirk Johnson, Goofy Wittaker, Corey Sanders (the unknown Corey Sanders), David Tua, etc. etc. etc... About the only power punch Maskaev could stand up to was Rahman's.. In fact after Sam Peter knocked Maskaev out -- Maskaev knocked Rahman out.. Vitali was the first guy to stop Sam Peter and the only guy who ever stopped Larry Donald.

Vitali beat Kirk Johnson 34-1... Juan Carlos Gomez 44-1... Corrie Saunders 39-2... Chris Arreola 27-0... Kevin Johnson 22-0-1... Sam Peter 30-1... Tomaz Adamek 44-1... And he knocked out Danny Williams just after Williams knocked out MIke Tyson and was still relatively fresh... Those opponents owned 5 World Titles between them, so Rahman wouldn't have been a big feather in Vitali's cap.

SaadOffTheDeck wrote:He would have had to face rahman, pretty good fight. Be the best result of his career if he won.

would have been like shottin ducks in a barrel
for Dr. "Iron-Fist".

BTW did you check out the photo boxrec has put under his ring record ?
should be in the encyclopedia Brittanicia that begins the chapter "legendary Heavyweight Champions"

Caractacus wrote:

SaadOffTheDeck wrote:He would have had to face rahman, pretty good fight. Be the best result of his career if he won.

would have been like shottin ducks in a barrel
for Dr. "Iron-Fist".

BTW did you check out the photo box=rec has put under his ring record ?
should be in the encyclopedia Brittanicia under the chapter "legendary Heavyweight Champions"

I think you're more confident than he was.

So Vitali came off a 4-year layoff and smashed Sam Peter very easily... And Peter won the title by easily knocking out Oleg Maskaev... and Maskaev knocked Rahman out for the 2nd time at age 39... and somehow Rahman poses problems for Vitali Klitschko????

Vitali retired rather than face rahman, honey bunny.

Didn't he need the layoff to sort out his PEDS, ahem, I mean, injuries

Seriously though, he'd have just beat up a few more C level heavyweights. It was a really poor era. What's Vitali's best win? He never beat anyone.

It's a shame he didn't come along ten years earlier or even ten years later.

Vitali Klistschko has great wins... and a fabulous resume.

He's the only fighter to ever stop Larry Donald, 39-2-2.. Bowe couldn't do it... He hammered out Danny Williams 32-3, just before Williams took out Mike Tyson... Kirk Johnson was 34-1 and his only loss was being DQ'd for a beltline punch when he faced Ruiz... Vitali blew Kirk Johnson out in 2 rounds... Vitali was leading all the way on ALL SCORECARDS against Lennox Lewis... Vitali pounded out tough Corrie Sanders, 39-2, who upset his brother Wladimir in his previous fight for a tremendous KO win over an ATG... Vitali came off a 4-year layoff to dominate and stop 30-1 Sam Peter... Peter easily knocked out Oleg Maskaev, who knocked out Hasim Rahman twice... And Rahman knocked out Lennox Lewis... Vitali was the first man to beat undefeated Kevin Johnson, 22-0-1... Vitali was the first man to defeat Chris Arreola, 27-0... Vitali was the only man to ever KO Vaughan Bean, 42-2, who Evander Holyfield and Michael Moorer couldn't stop... Vitali dominated and stopped Juan Carlos Gomez, who was 44-1... Vitali dominated and was the first to stop Tomasz Adamek, who was 44-1... Vitali stopped undefeated Oldlanier Solis, 17-0, an Olympic Gold Medal winner, with a 1-round KO... VK beat undefeated Timo Hoffman, 22-0... VK beat 2-time Heavyweight Champion Herbie Hide, 31-1, by 2 round KO to win his 1st Heavyweight Championship... Vitali very easily knocked out Ed Mahone in 3, who was undefeated in 23 fights... The above opponents, without counting Lewis, had a record of 444 wins and 13 losses.

Other highlights are: Vitali was never knocked down ... and he was never behind on points at the conclusion of any of his 47 fights... He won 15 Heavyweight Championship Fights, including 12 consecutive Heavyweight Championship fights, which is more than Lewis, Holyfield, Bowe, or Tyson ever won in a row.. He has a better KO ratio than Lewis, Tyson, Holyfield, or Bowe... He also has a better winning ratio than Tyson, Lewis or Holyfield...and better than Bowe too if you count all his fights -- because Bowe had a NC against Buster Mathis Jr that was changed from a DQ loss, which is what the referee ruled initially... But the fight is definitely on his record and he didn't win it.

If Vitali didn't retire is perhaps one of the easiest questions ever asked on this site.

He would keep himself in good condition, keeo fighting 2/3 times per year & he would have kept on winning up until his eventual retirement a few years ago...

I would only hope that we woyld have seen him defend against David Haye.
Both men are power-punchers & both men are willing to let their hands go...
Potentially it could have been a very exciting fight.